Investigating the Relationship Between Self-Perceived Moral Superiority and Moral Behavior Using Economic Games

Tappin, Ben M; McKay, Ryan

doi:10.1177/1948550617750736

Cited by 8 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 56 publications

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“…For example, a meta‐analysis based on 111 studies suggested only a small effect size of self‐reported moral identity on actual moral behaviours (Hertz & Krettenauer, 2016 ). People who feel themselves as morally superior to others do not necessarily enact more moral behaviours (Tappin & McKay, 2019 ). Their moral identity predicts more public claims but not private acts of integrity (Dong et al, 2019 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Being good to look good: Self‐reported moral character predicts moral double standards among reputation‐seeking individuals

Dong

Kupfer

Yuan

et al. 2022

British J of Psychology

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Moral character is widely expected to lead to moral judgments and practices. However, such expectations are often breached, especially when moral character is measured by self-report.We propose that because self-reported moral character partly reflects a desire to appear good, people who self-report a strong moral character will show moral harshness towards others and downplay their own transgressions-that is, they will show greater moral hypocrisy. This self-other discrepancy in moral judgments should be pronounced among individuals who are particularly motivated by reputation. Employing diverse methods including large-scale multination panel data (N = 34,323), and vignette and behavioral experiments (N = 700), four studies supported our proposition, showing that various indicators of moral character (Benevolence and Universalism values, justice sensitivity, and moral identity) predicted harsher judgments of others' more than own transgressions. Moreover, these double standards emerged particularly among individuals possessing strong reputation management motives. The findings highlight how reputational concerns moderate the link between moral character and moral judgment.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Being good to look good: Self‐reported moral character predicts moral double standards among reputation‐seeking individuals

Dong

Kupfer

Yuan

et al. 2022

British J of Psychology

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show abstract

“…Some studies suggest no effect of moral superiority on moral behavior. Measured feelings of moral superiority were unrelated to either trust in others in a trust game, or trustworthiness in a dictator game [34]. However, other studies suggest a positive effect of moral superiority on subsequent moral behavior.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Self-enhancement in moral hypocrisy: Moral superiority and moral identity are about better appearances

2019

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People often consider themselves as more moral than average others (i.e., moral superiority) and present themselves as more moral than they actually are (i.e., moral hypocrisy). We examined whether feelings of moral superiority—as a manifestation of self-enhancement motives—motivates people’s hypocritical behavior, that is, their discrepant moral performances in public versus private settings. In three studies (total N = 1,151), participants distributed two tasks (one favorable and one unfavorable) between themselves and an anonymous partner, with the option of using an ostensibly fair randomizer (e.g., a self-prepared coin). We found that when experiencing feelings of moral superiority (vs. non-superiority), people, especially those who highly identified with moral values (Studies 1 and 2), were less likely to directly give themselves the favorable task, but they were not less likely to cheat in private after using the randomizer (Studies 1 to 3). Both self-enhancement motives and moral identity have implications for hypocritical behavior, by motivating public moral appearances but not private moral integrity.

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The capricious relationship between technology and democracy: Analyzing public policy discussions in the UK and US

2021

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This study provides a comparative survey of policymaking discourse in the United Kingdom and the United States from 2016 to 2020 around digital threats to democracy. Through an inductive coding process, it identifies six core ideals common in these two countries: transparency, accountability, engagement, informed public, social solidarity, and freedom of expression. Reviewing how these ideals are constructed in policy-making documents, we find differences in each country's emphasis, inconsistencies in how some democratic ideals are evoked and promoted, conflicts between different democratic ideals, and disconnects between empirical realities of democracy and policymaking discourse. There is a lack of clarity in what social solidarity, engagement, and freedom of expression mean and how they should be balanced; conceptions of an informed public are deeply fraught, and in tension with other ideals. We argue that policymaking discourse is often out of step with the growing literature which suggests that political conflicts between social groups, right-wing extremism, and antidemocratic actions increasingly taken by elites and parties are at the root of growing democratic crises. This state of policy-making discourse has important implications for attempts to pursue regulation and suggests the need for further reflection by policymakers on the democratic ideals they are solving for.

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Investigating the Relationship Between Self-Perceived Moral Superiority and Moral Behavior Using Economic Games

Cited by 8 publications

References 56 publications

Being good to look good: Self‐reported moral character predicts moral double standards among reputation‐seeking individuals

Being good to look good: Self‐reported moral character predicts moral double standards among reputation‐seeking individuals

Self-enhancement in moral hypocrisy: Moral superiority and moral identity are about better appearances

The capricious relationship between technology and democracy: Analyzing public policy discussions in the UK and US

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